Apistogramma eunotus (need general information)

[JG]

Hi all,

It's been awhile since I've posted... packing to move and new arrival of our baby daughter has kept me quite busy. Anyhow, I've packed all of my reference books and don't have any info on the Apistogramma eunotus species. If someone could provide some details (water params, temperment, breeding success, etc.) about this animal it would be greatly appreciated. I was considering purchasing a pair for a South American tank I'm currently running.

Thanks,

J

 

[Apistopez]

Jay, according to the Cichlid Atlas 1, it says that comes fron Rio Ucayali area and the distribution is in the lowlands of Peru and close regions of Colombia.
A. eunotus has been found with A. nijsseni and A. norberti in black waters and with A. cacatuoides in white waters of Rio Ucayali. Also in habitats with small clear waters streams found with A. panduro.

Due to this A. eunotus should be 'easy' to keep. Needs good spacious tank due to its size and activity level. It is sensitive to the presence of humic matter. The GH maybe between 1-12 dH, slightly acidic water (ex.6) and temp. between 70 to 87ºF, but slightly alkaline water is acceptable too. Extreme acidic water and high temps. should be avoided. Better kept in groups of 8 to 12 fish and with wood, leaf litter and/or dense vegetation. The male will mate with all the females in its superterritory. Male will defend his large territory against other males, cory cats and tetras.

The book's remarks say that next to A. cacatuoides, it is one of the hardiest apistos.

Hope this helps. If you need any other information let us know.
Eduardo

 

[tx_mike]

A. eunotus

I keep & breed A. eunotus, they are actually one of my favorite Apisto species. Some of the things I've learned seem to contradict the literature on this species. I keep mine at a ph of 5.5 to 6.2 and a GH of 1 degree or less. My experience with breeding is that with harder water, especially water with any significant amount of KH will result in infertile eggs and either a very small hatch out or no hatch out at all. Also fully mature females will have huge, and I really mean huge, batches of fry. My first really successful hatch was an eye opener, when the female finally came out of her pot I was disappointed because I didn't see any fry. That was because I was looking for your typical batch of 20 to 80. I finally realized that the huge (4" to 5" ) dark spot underneath her was fry, there must have been over 200 of them.

Also keep in mind that these are big fish and really need alot of room. My males usually get to just under 4" nose to caudal pedicle. As a minimum I'd keep a trio in a 20 long, I have custom 48"x18"x 10" deep tanks that I'm moving my main breeding group to. Surprisingly females will battle rather violently for dominance. I regularly see two females going at it with a lip lock on each other.

Tannins and humic acid in the water are a no-no, so stay away from leaf litter and wood that will "tea" the water.

Last note - I've noticed many fish sold as Eunotus (by both individuals and LFS's) are actually A. cruzi. These fish are from the same group and other than size and minor lateral line details can be easily confused as juvies or young adults. Also Eunotus are tough to sex until they become sexually mature.

One last interesting note, females of this species are super moms. They will steal any other Apisto fry available to them and are great foster moms.

 

[JG]

Thanks for the information guys. You've saved me some serious box searching for my books.

 

[Mike Wise]

Last note - I've noticed many fish sold as Eunotus (by both individuals and LFS's) are actually A. cruzi.

Most 'A. cruzi' in the hobby are not the true A. cruzi. As far as I know the true A. eunotus has never been in the hobby! What we now have in the hobby are 2 or 3 different forms (species?) related to A. eunotus from the upper Ucayali.

 

[JG]

Most 'A. cruzi' in the hobby are not the true A. cruzi. As far as I know the true A. eunotus has never been in the hobby! What we now have in the hobby are 2 or 3 different forms (species?) related to A. eunotus from the upper Ucayali.

Hi Mike,

What are the "2 or 3 different forms related to A. eunotus"?

Thanks,

J

 

[Mike Wise]

A. cf. eunotus Santa Ana (A 74); A. cf. eunotus Orange-tail/Orangeschwanz (A 75) (possibly a color morph of the previous form); A. cf. eunotus Orange-belly/Orangebauch (A 76), & A. cf. eunotus Tail-stripes/Schwanzstreifen (A 77)

I personally believe that A. cf. eunotus Río Shahuaya (the Pink Apisto from the late 70s & early 80s) is a geographic color morph of the true A. eunotus. They come from the same general area around Pucallpa, Peru and have very similar dark markings & meristics.

 

[JG]

The LFS has also labelled the Ap. eunotus as "Blue Cheek Apistogramma" I'm going to check them out in a few minutes and will try and take a few shots.

 

[Mike Wise]

A. sp. Rotpunkt has previously been sold under the name Blue-cheek. You might want to see if they are Rotpunkt, too.